There are many different treatment options for mesothelioma, depending on what stage a patient is in. These options include chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, immunotherapy and other complimentary treatments.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is a method of administering drugs that are used to stop the growth of cancer cells. Chemotherapy can be taken by mouth or can be injected into a vein or muscle. Chemotherapy drugs travel through the bloodstream. A specific type of chemotherapy that is used to treat mesothelioma patients is hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, and this is when anti-cancer drugs are heated before they are administered to the patient. Doing this may kill more cancer cells. It is important to note that chemotherapy can have a lot of adverse side effects. Some side effects include hair loss, vomiting and nausea.
Surgery
Some patients that have malignant mesothelioma have surgery at some point during treatment. For malignant mesothelioma in the chest, a surgery that may be used includes pleurodesis, which uses chemicals to create a scar in the area between the layers of the pleura. This causes the build-up of fluid in the pleural cavity to cease. Another type of surgical procedure includes a wide local excision, which is a surgery that takes out the cancer along with healthy tissue around the cancer cells. Another option is a pleurectomy and decortication, which removes some of the covering of the lining of the chest and the lungs and also a section of the outside area of the lungs. An additional surgery some patients may undergo is an extrapleural pneumonectomy. This involves the removal of a lung, the diaphragm, the lining of the sac around the heart and a portion of the lining of the chest. Some other common procedures for malignant mesothelioma include biopsies for diagnosis, which can include thoracoscopy, fine needle aspiration, core needle biopsy, incisional biopsy, mediastinoscopy and laparoscopy. Palliative procedures have the aim of improving a patient’s overall quality of life. Procedures include paracentesis, pleurodesis, pericardiocentesis and thoracentesis. There are also curative surgeries.
Radiation
Radiation therapy uses high energy x-rays to kill cancer cells and is usually administered with surgery and is also used to keep cancer cells from growing. External radiation therapy is a form of radiation therapy that utilizes a machine outside the body that sends radiation toward the section of the body that has the cancer.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is a form of treatment that teaches the patient’s immune system to find and destroy cancer cells just like it does with other illnesses. This is a biologic therapy. Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy is being used as a form of immunotherapy and it is when these inhibitors block the protein in some cancer cells. This allows for the body’s T cells to have a better chance of killing the cancer.
Complementary Treatments
Complementary treatments can include yoga, meditation, hypnosis and acupuncture.
Sources:
https://www.cancer.gov/types/mesothelioma/patient/mesothelioma-treatment-pdq
